Trip to the Fridge: Deschutes Red Chair NWPA

I had a real rough day at work today, and when I got home it was time for a beer. To my delight I opened the beer fridge and found a 6-pack of DeschutesRed Chair Northwest Pale Alewaiting for me to try.

Red Chair is the newest member of Deschutes seasonal lineup replacing Cinder Cone Red. Fans of the Bend, Oregon Brewery may remember this beer appearing last year as Red Chair IPA. Nonetheless, it was new to me and I liked it. There was a near perfect balance between the caramel malt and the citrusy hops. There’s not a ton hops, but I think there is enough to please the average IPA drinker. It is very quaffable, but beware it is 6.4% ABV. I found it so easy to drink that I couldn’t stop at one, and struggled to stop at two.

Brewery Description:Red Chair NWPA is named after the oldest operating lift at Mt. Bachelor here in Central Oregon. And just as the locals line up for that fabled mountain ride, they flock to our Bend brew pub whenever it goes on tap. One thing we’ve learned, “when the brew pub talks, listen.” For the past two decades, the serious beer fanatics down there seldom miss when we’ve hit on something truly special.

What makes this copper colored beauty so wildly popular? As a debut Northwest Pale Ale, it’s an adventure all its own. It has a plush body with satiny caramel flavors derived from seven varieties of malt. Yet, despite it all, it remains a hop-forward ale with that distinctive citrusy punch. Just minus any mouth-puckering bitterness.